Number of Nonresident Workers Decline in 1993

Against the backdrop of an outstanding year (1993) for employment and earnings in Alaska, the number ofworking nonresidents1 declined for the first time since 1987. (See Figure 1.) While the decrease was small, 2.9 percent or about 2,300 workers less than 1992, the fact it happened at all is significant. Practically every industry sector was fueling Alaska's economy during 1993 with noteworthy contributions by construction, services and retail trade. Overall, there were 5,300 more wage and salary workers employed at some time in Alaska in 1993 than were employed in 1992. Based on the experience of the prior six years, it was expected that the percent nonresident workers would have increased, or at the very least, held it's own.